Horse riding is catching on among Romanians says Equestria owner

The first edition of Salon du Cheval Bucharest, an event inspired by the famous equestrian event Salon du Cheval Paris was organized by the Equestria Riding Club at the end of September near Bucharest. Ozana Moraru the club’s owner , talked to BR about how profitable it is to invest in a riding club and whether this sport is becoming more popular among Romanians.

Simona Bazavan

How much did you invest in setting up the riding club and is it a profitable business?

I have invested some EUR 5 million but this does not include the land and the horses. Construction started in 2008 and was completed in 2010. At present, Romania is not the best suited country to such a business. The investment in a project like Equestria would have been recovered in perhaps three or four years in Germany but in Romania one has to multiply this by ten. Leaving aside the investment, we have been on an upward trend since opening. Last year we did not post profit but this year we are starting to see a monthly profit coming from day-to-day activities. Competitions too can be very profitable.

There are no plans to invest in the physical expansion of the current base other then perhaps buy land to build a car park. I prefer to manage the club as it is and maintain its quality level. In the future we plan to focus on the organization of competitions, especially international and more exclusive ones which have higher participation fees. We also want to invest in buying more horses.

Has horse riding caught on among Romanians?

Yes, it is becoming more popular. I can see this from the number of people joining our riding classes – both children and adults. Some of them invest in buying a horse and later join competitions.

What is the necessary investment in buying a horse and what are the monthly boarding costs?

A recreational horse can cost somewhere between EUR 5,000 and EUR 10,000, depending on its features and training. Monthly boarding costs reach EUR 400. This includes the housing, feed, shoeing and some veterinary services. Due to the drought this year we have seen an increase in price of feed. It is almost cheaper to import than to buy locally.

Can one talk about a local market for horses?

Yes, there is a local market, but we are mainly talking about private horse owners and breeders. The number of private owners is going up and they are more willing to invest in buying horses for sale. State-owned horse farms however are dealing with huge problems and the authorities don’t seem willing to help.

Things are starting to evolve but this is perhaps happening too slowly. And it doesn’t have to do entirely with the economic context. It also has very much to do with education and tradition.

Equestria riding club

Set up in 2010 by Ozana Moraru, an ophthalmologist doctor who together with her husband Cristian Moraru, also an ophthalmologist, owns the Oculus eye clinic
The riding club is located in Tancabesti, near Bucharest
Individual riding lessons cost RON 60 (approximately EUR 14) for a 30-minute session

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